Kim Jong Un denounces the warship accident as a “crime”

The leader of North Korea has denounced a recent naval accident, calling military leaders’ actions a “criminal” failure.

According to state media source KCNA, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un condemned the serious accident that happened during the launch of a new warship on Wednesday as a “criminal act” caused by negligence and stupidity.

Kim was present when the incident occurred at the port of Chongjin in the northeast. He was watching the launch of a 5,000-ton destroyer, the nation’s largest class of warship to date, when the ship lost equilibrium and was damaged. Although they did not confirm any casualties, KCNA said that portions of the ship’s bottom were crushed.

Kim harshly denounced the event, calling it “a serious accident and criminal act caused by absolute carelessness, irresponsibility, and unscientific empiricism” and saying it “brought the dignity and self-respect of our state to a collapse.” Before a significant ruling Workers’ Party meeting in June, he ordered the ship to be restored immediately.

According to KCNA, Kim emphasized that repairing the destroyer was “a political issue directly related to the authority of the state” in addition to being a practical requirement.

After the unsuccessful launch, the South Korean military verified that the damaged ship was floating sideways in the water. Prior to the occurrence, US and South Korean intelligence had been keeping an eye on activities at the port, according to Joint Chiefs of Staff spokesperson Lee Sung-jun.

Around the same time that state media disclosed the specifics of the unsuccessful warship launch, South Korea’s military later on Thursday said that North Korea had fired several cruise missiles from a location south of the port. Regarding the missiles, nothing further was said.

The rare public acknowledgement comes after North Korea launched a similar-sized warship at the Nampho shipyard on the west coast of the country in April, an event that Kim also oversaw.

Similar events, such as unsuccessful space launches and civilian tragedies, have happened in North Korea before and have occasionally been utilized to support the governing party’s position in handling domestic issues.

With plans to outfit the ships with the ability to carry and launch dozens of missiles, Kim Jong Un’s larger push to modernize North Korea’s naval forces includes this year’s 5,000-ton destroyers.